anciful ideas of these old naturalists are
sometimes very amusing from their very absurdity.

"The king-vultures live in pairs as eagles do--though they are often
seen in flocks, when a carcass or some other object has brought them
together.

"This bird has been called the `painted' vulture on account of the
brilliant colours upon his head and neck, which do, in fact, present the
appearance of the most vivid painting. He derives his name of a
`King-vulture,' not from the possession of any noble qualities, but from
the manner in which he tyrannises over the _common_ vultures (_aura_ and
_atratus_), keeping them from their food until he has gorged himself
with the choicest morsels. In this sense the name is most appropriate;
as such conduct presents a striking analogy to that of most human kings,
towards the _common_ people.

"Next to the condor in size," continued the naturalist, "and, perhaps,
quite equal to him, is the great _Californian vulture_--the `condor of
the north.' He is classed among the purging-vultures (_Cathartes
Californianus_). This bird may be called black, as he is nearly of that
hue all over the body; although some of the secondary wing feathers are
white at the tips, and the coverts are brown. Black, however, is the
prevailing colour of the bird. His naked head and neck is reddish; but
he wants the crest or comb, which the condors and king-vultures have.
On the posterior part of his neck, long lance-shaped feathers form a
sort of ruff or collar, as in other birds of this kind.

"The Californian vulture derives his name from the country which he
inhabits--the great chain of the Californian mountains--the Sierra
Nevada--which extends almost without interruption through twenty degrees
of latitude. That he sometimes visits the Rocky Mountains, and their
kindred the Cordilleras of the Sierra Madre in Mexico, there can be
little doubt. A large bird occasionally seen among these mountains, and
pronounced to be the condor, is far more likely to have been the
Californian vulture. As far as size is concerned, this mistake might
easily be made, for the latter bird is nearly, if not quite, as large as
the former. A specimen of the Californian vulture has been measured,
which proved to be four feet eight inches in length, and nine feet eight
inches between the tips of the wings! Now, this is actually larger than
the average size of the condors; and it is not improbable, therefore,
that individuals